"Of course you can,” Cole replied with a calmness he didn’t feel. “He is the one who found them after all, and he knew what fate awaited them. He could have let them slip away; he chose not to. I instructed Brokk to wait for me before doing anything because this wasmykill to make. Their blood was mine to have on my hands. Brokk would have done it, but I ordered him not to."
"If I ordered him to do something different than you, whose order would he choose to obey?"
"You already know who he would obey, my Lord," Cole said. "He chose to fight for you during the war; you are where his loyalty lies."
"Hmm," the Lord murmured. "I guess we shall see."
With those words, Cole had no doubt this man would one day try to pit them against each other, but he was also certain as to where his brother's loyalty lay. And he would not allow it to happen.
He had no fear of Brokk turning on him, but he did fear what might happen to his brother if the Lord got anywhere near him.
Cole didn’t respond. The Lord didn't want one from him anyway; he was making his point, playing his games, and in the future, he would make another move against someone Cole loved.
When that time came, Cole would be prepared for him. The Lord wouldnotget another loved one of his.
For now, the Lord was enjoying playing with him, but that would end. Cole was his number one target on the list of immortals he wanted dead, but it would be his loved ones that the Lord tried to destroy first.
It would be a fun game for him—a way to destroy Cole before he actually went for the killing blow.
It was a game Cole would win.
The Lord seized Orin’s hair and lifted the head from the ground. Its mouth hung slightly ajar to reveal the teeth within. The work they’d done on it still looked good. Bringing the head closer to his face, the Lord studied it before scenting the air.
"I sense no magic here," he muttered.
Outwardly, Cole remained unmoving. Inwardly, his shoulders sagged and he wiped the imaginary sweat from his brow. This wasn't over, but so far, so good.
"Where did Brokk find them?" the Lord inquired.
"The human realm," Cole replied.
“Interesting." He poked Orin’s nose, and the head swayed in his grasp. "Was he anywhere near your little girlfriend?"
"No. They were near the city, hiding amid the remains of the buildings and the humans."
“Oh, they were living with the rats. How suiting. It’s strange though; I have men searching the city."
“You've had men searching for them since the war ended, and none found them."
The Lord stopped poking Orin’s nose and looked up at Cole over the swinging head. "Are you calling my men inadequate?"
"I'm not calling them anything; I’m simply stating a fact."
He may be pushing the Lord too far, but he wasn’t going to stand here and take everything this madman dished out.
"How is it your brother found them so quickly when he couldn't find them before?" the Lord inquired.
"I don’t know. I'm assuming they had only recently entered the human realm when Brokk was alerted to them. We’ve had spies searching for them for months," Cole replied. "Where they were hiding before they arrived in the human realm, I have no idea. But our allies in the human realm alerted us as soon as Orin and Varo were spotted. And now, they’re dead."
"Yes, they are."
The Lord released Orin’s head. A wet thud sounded when it hit the ground and rolled a few feet away.
“I hear you took a fae sword to the heart and lived,” the Lord said.
Cole was not surprised that the Lord had this knowledge. He already knew someone in the Gloaming was feeding him information. With the number of people who witnessed what should have been his demise, Cole hadn’t expected it not to make its way back to the Lord.
It didn’t even have to be the traitor who was feeding him information. Any dark fae could have come here to trade, or anyone from Dragonia could have gone into another realm and heard the tale. For all he knew, the troubadours were already singing about it.
